


Breathe

by Carry_On_My_Assbutt



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan, Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Angst, Blood, Crossover, M/M, mentions of gore, this has a shit ending I'm sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-16
Updated: 2015-03-16
Packaged: 2018-03-18 03:08:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3553793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carry_On_My_Assbutt/pseuds/Carry_On_My_Assbutt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren learns it's hard to keep secrets.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breathe

To be fair, Armin felt as if his life was to be buried under books and assignments and school, so while he's usually perceptive, but he never realized that the _one time_ he doesn't notice something would fuck him over so badly. Of course he would've normally noticed if his best friend was a little thinner and skipped meals, and under the stress of the final weeks of school, Armin was unable to notice the change in habits his friend showed. 

Of course, Armin noticed the other bed in their shared dorm was almost always empty, the chair next to him in the cafeteria vacant, and the times he actually saw him diminishing, but his classes required the utmost attention, least Armin fail and lose the scholarship one of the best universities in the country had offered him. 

The rest of his friends understood, and so the blonde was cooped up in the library the most, and if he wasn't trying to stuff his mind full of knowledge, he was meeting with an advisor or eating something in the cafeteria, preparing for his next project. 

_This_ however, takes the cake. 

Armin swallowed hard. His arms were the only thing keeping him upright at the moment, and they were shaking, _badly_. Wide-eyed, his throat was dry and his stomach clenched. If he wanted to throw up, it would have to wait until later. His hand slipped on the wood floor, and his palm skidded in something warm and wet. His muscles clenched, and he didn't even have the strength to rip his hand away from the wet sensation. His mouth is moving, but his voice has left, and he can only mouth the words and stare in horror.

_Eren?_

His friend since childhood, Eren Jeager, is crouching in a pool of something mangled and oozing and torn _open_. His body is frozen in an almost predatory angle, his hands sunken into the pile of flesh in front of him and his eyes shimmering dangerously beneath his hair, caked in blood and sweat. They can't be more than several feet apart, and Armin, who isn't that athletic in the first place, cries at the disadvantage he has. 

Eren is supernatural. Armin is not. If he were to try to run, Eren would be on him in seconds. Even so, Armin found himself backing up inch by painful inch, keeping his eyes trained on Eren. 

"Eren--" He manages to squeak out. His voice cracked, and Armin flinched at the level of fear in his voice. The brunette still hadn't moved, instead keeping his bright green eyes fixated upon the small blonde. Armin saw something that looked like panic flash across his face, and it was at that moment he chose to run. 

Armin threw himself onto his stomach and propelled his body up, grabbing at the wall for support as he ran. Fear pounded through his veins and adrenaline made his heart pound in his chest and ears. He heard Eren stand and run after him, the wet sounds of his feet leaving bloody footprints on the floor. Armin can feel himself panicking, and he's leaning so far forward as he runs he's scared he'll fall forward. 

His blood runs cold as a hand grips his arm and yanks. The sound Armin makes as the two crash to the ground can only be described as pitiful. Armin falls hard on his hands and knees, and feels the weight of Eren gripping his arms. His first instinct is to struggle, and he tries to push himself forward with his feet, but Eren's weight pins him against the floor. Breathing heavily, Armin can feel himself shake and his eyes are squeezed shut against the sting of tears. "Eren, Eren," he repeats the name like a mantra, and hopes, begs that he'll be able to escape, or Eren will come to his senses. 

"Armin," Eren's voice is low and gravely, and Armin can smell blood, can feel it seep through his clothes, and he has to bite his lip and think of anything other than the coppery stench or he'll throw up. He jumps, feeling Eren's nose touch the back of his neck. It's cold and sends a shiver running down his spine. "Armin, I'm hungry." Armin's stomach clenches. "But I won't hurt you. I just..." Eren pauses, and Armin can hear his heavy breathing. Something warm and wet and _sticky_ touches the back of Armin's neck, and he hears a rumbling in Eren's chest. He lays there, frozen as Eren drags his tongue across the back of his neck, smearing blood on his pale skin. 

"E-Eren..." Armin whimpers. 

" _Armin_ ," Eren breathes against his neck, and Armin is so tense and on edge he can't tell exactly when he faints.

...

Armin wakes up on something warm and soft. Opening his eyes, he can see the dark outlines of his own room. He sighs in relief, but then remembers he shares the room with Eren. He bolts up, pushing back the covers and looking around the room. Eren is sitting on the edge of his own bed, hunched over with his hands clasped together. He's looking at Armin with calm eyes. Armin is still fearful, but he knows Eren would never try to kill someone inside the school; it would prove to be too much trouble. He hopes that the fact that they've been best friends for years means Eren would be less willing to kill him, but he can't be sure. 

They stare at each other for a few moments in silence. Armin is struggling to find words, but Eren breaks the tension.

"Are you going to turn me in?" He asks. His voice is hoarse, and now that his eyes have adjusted, Armin can see the edges of his eyes are red. He averts his eyes, and can see Eren's hands are quivering. 

"Eren..." Armin isn't sure what to do. Should he say yes and risk going to the authorities, put the rest of his friends in danger and his relationship with them at risk? Or should he keep quiet and take the chance of risking the lives of his fellow peers? Armin doesn't know how much he can trust his own words, but it's _Eren_ , not some random stranger that's sitting across from him. "I..." He knows that as a citizen, it's the _law_ to report any and all ghouls, but the more Armin thinks about it, the more he wants to keep Eren a secret. "I w-won't tell anyone." He whispers. His voice is still shaking. "I-I won't tell anyone because I trust you, Eren." 

He hears Eren laugh hoarsely, and looks over. "Trust me, huh?" Eren repeats Armin's words to hismelf as if they're the funniest thing he's heard all day. "Just like you trusted me to be normal, right?" Armin clenches his fist around the blankets. 

"I trust you." He said, looking at Eren firmly. He had stopped shaking, but he was still nervous. Then, everything fit in place; Eren missing meals, sometimes not showing up to class, Eren not acting like himself and becoming paler. Eren, becoming thinner. Armin felt his eyes well with tears as the weight of the situation finally hit him. Eren would never be a normal human being. He could never eat Mikasa's cooking or go with them to restaurants or live a normal life. He couldn't be normal because _normal_ didn't exist. "...how long?" Armin asked. "How long, Eren?" 

The brunette paused. "Longer than I can remember." 

Armin broke down, bringing his fists up to his face to press against his eyes. He hunched his back, pressing the blanket to his face to muffle his sobs. "Eren, _Eren_ ," he cried, shaking. He felt the bed dip as Eren sat next to him, felt the warmth of his hand on his skin, felt him. He couldn't find the strength in him to hug Eren back, but he leaned against Eren's shoulder and cried harder than he had in a long time. Eren rubbed small circles against his back, staring at the dried blood on the back of Armin's neck. 

"Why?" He choked out, "Why you? Why you?" Eren tightened his hold, burying his face in Armin's shoulder. 

"Armin," Eren croaked, "Armin, I love you." 

They both cried themselves to sleep.


End file.
